Surgery Patient Information

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What You Need to Know Before You Have Surgery

Thank you for choosing Mercy Surgery Center for your upcoming surgical procedure. Our skilled, experienced surgeons and staff are looking forward to p roviding you with the very best and safest care possible. There are a number of things you need to know and do prior to your surgery.

Please review the following information. If you have any questions about your procedure, contact your attending physician. If you have any questions about Mercy Surgery Center, please call 330-489-1102 or 330-489-1300.

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Pre-admission Testing

The type of anesthetic you will receive and your general health will determine if you must come to the PEAT (Patient Education and Testing) Department before your surgery date. You will be given a medical history form in your surgeon’s office to compl ete. The nurse in the PEAT Department will review this form with you. She will forward your history to the anesthesiologist who will decide if you need any further testing.

If you have had an EKG (electrocardiogram) and/or a chest x-ray one year before your surgery or blood work within 6 months, please bring a copy with you or tell us where and when the tests were performed and we will obtain the results.

Pre-registration

Registration is required to provide accurate treatment and billing information. We ask that you have your insurance information available when calling to preregister. The following information is needed for preregistration:

Day of Surgery

You will be called the night before surgery by the Pre-Testing personnel and advised when you should arrive at the Medical Center and your surgery time. If your surgery is on Monday, you will be called on Friday before your surgery date. Please arrive promptly.

To maintain your privacy and confidentiality, the Surgery Center has a private entrance and free parking on 13th Street. Take the elevator to the first floor and check in with the personnel at the Surgery Information Desk. They will notify the Pre-Procedure area that you have arrived and validate your parking ticket.

Following these instructions will help make your surgery a safe one:

Do not eat or drink anything after midnight (including mints, gum or water)
the night before surgery unless you are given specific instructions by your surgeon or anesthesiologist.

Medications: Do not take any medications unless you are advised differently.

If you smoke, quit or at least cut down before surgery. Do not smoke after midnight the day before your surgery. Nonsmokers heal faster than people who smoke.

If you have a fever, cold or any changes in your health, call your doctor. Surgery may need to be postponed.

Bring your advance medical directives (Living Will and Durable Power of Attorney). The Durable Power of Attorney lets you choose someone to carry out your wishes for medical care when you can’t act for yourself. The Living Will explains in writing the type of medical care you would want if you couldn’t make your wishes known. If you wish, we will provide you with information about these documents.

Wear loose fitting clothing that will be comfortable for you to wear home.

If your child is having surgery, you may bring a special toy or blanket. If he/she takes a bottle, please bring one with you.

Before you leave home in the morning follow these instructions: shower; remember not to eat or drink; remove make-up, nail polish and lipstick; wear loose clothing; and leave valuables such as cash, credit cards and jewelry (including rings) at home.

A responsible adult must drive you home after surgery and someone must be with you for the next 24 hours. For your safety and the safety of others, you may not drive yourself home.

Pre-procedure Area

Hospital personnel will escort you and one family member to the Pre-Procedure Area. Please limit the number of people who accompany you to the hospital. One visitor at a time will be able to go with you into the Pre-Procedure Area before surgery. Please do not bring other children.

If you are having a cataract extraction, your family member will be asked to wait in the lobby and you will see them when your procedure is completed.

For your privacy, there are 16 individual rooms in this area. At this time, you will be asked to wear a gown and slippers provided by the hospital. If you are expecting to go home the same day, your clothing will be placed in a locker and given to you when you are ready to go home. If you are expecting to stay the night, your belongings will be given to your family member to take home. An identification bracelet will be placed on your arm until you go home. You will then meet with your anesthesiologist and/or nurse anesthetist to discuss what type of anesthesia is best for you. An IV will be started in a vein in your arm or hand. You may be given medication that will help you to relax.

The Operating Room

One of the Operating Room personnel will introduce themselves to you and transport you to the room where you will be having your surgery.
Our Surgery Center contains 14 surgical suites that are twice as large as most existing surgery rooms.

It is normal to have concerns, please be assured that your surgical procedure will be performed by a skilled, compassionate staff in a facility equipped with the latest technology. Your surgeon leads the OR team that usually consists of nurses, an anesthesia provider and a surgical assistant/technician. Working together, they will provide a sterile and safe surgical environment.

The Recovery Room

If you have had a general/spinal/epidural anesthetic, your anesthesia provider will accompany you to the Recovery Room or Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU). The PACU contains state-of-the-art monitoring systems and is designed for the specialized care that is needed immediately after surgery. The anesthesia team and PACU staff work closely together to provide quality care for you.

Your surgeon will talk with your family member to let them know that the surgery is complete and you are in the PACU.

Recovery from a minor procedure frequently occurs within an hour, major surgeries may take up to two hours or longer.

In the PACU, the nursing personnel are specially-trained nurses who are focused on your recovery. Vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse, breathing and temperature are monitored frequently. All patients are placed on cardiac monitors and receive oxygen temporarily to assist them during this stage of recovery. Frequent checks on vital signs and level of responsiveness provide the nurse with information about the progress of your recovery. Using this information, the nurse will provide pain medication and a safe, warm and comfortable environment for you.

To provide patient privacy and confidentiality, visiting a patient in the PACU is by exception only. Parents of young children may be asked to stay with their child if they are crying or if it will be a lengthy stay. Our goal is to reunite parents and children as quickly as possible. Children as a rule recover quickly and are often times ready to go back to their room within fifteen to forty-five minutes. Please do not leave the surgery information waiting room without notifying the personnel at the desk. If an adult patient requires a lengthy stay, a brief visit may be allowed to provide needed assurance for both the patient and family.

The anesthesiologist will discharge you from the PACU. Whether you are to be taken to a room for an overnight stay or to the Same Day Unit where you will go home, your family will be notified of your whereabouts. The Information Desk personnel will notify your visitor in the waiting area when you enter and exit the PACU.

Same-day Unit

In the Same-Day Unit, you will be able to have one visitor with you. Discharge instructions from your surgeon are reviewed with you by a nurse and you will receive a written copy to take home. You must have someone to drive you home after a general anesthetic. For your safety, please follow these guidelines:

Do not drink alcoholic beverages for 24 hours

Do not sign any legal documents for 24 hours

Do not drive or operate hazardous machinery for 24 hours

To provide patient privacy and confidentiality, you will leave from the Surgery Center exit.
If you go home the same day, a member of the Same- Day Unit will call you one to two days after your surgery. He/she will be asking you about the care you received and if you have any concerns. Your comments are very important to our mission of continuing Christ’s healing ministry by providing quality, compassionate care for the whole person.

Heart Procedures

If you are having a procedure in the Open Heart Operating Room or the Heart Cath Laboratory, such as a catheterization or a balloon angioplasty, you will be taken to the Regional Heart Center on the third floor of the main hospital after you have been prepared in the Pre-Procedure Area. Your family may then go with you and wait in their waiting room and the doctor will talk to them after the procedure.